Twenty comments

“The Miners of Wicklow” ~ before someone shouts ‘duplication’

Yes, I know, but ~ it is a difficult decision whether or not a tune is significantly different enough to deserve a placement of its own, up front rather than in the ‘comments’. I have been weighing that up and have decided to give this a go. Why? Well, it has, in my mind, significant difference to the other version given here on site:

I first learned this version from the McCusker Brothers, John in particular. I thought it might also be interesting to see how it has changed over time, if not by much. So, thanks to a generous friend, I recieved a copy of their early commercial recording of this, a set of jigs:

"Miners of Wicklow" / "Fasten the Leg" / "Old Man’s Delight"

Here’s a transcription from that recording to compare with my take on it:

Well, sounds like a bit of different setting to me. All I can add is that the original version posted https://thesession.org/tunes/6497
is what is played locally as far as I can see these days and I practically live in Wicklow.

I did catch the occassional session in Wicklow, enjoying escaping there for a walk and contemplation, and some pub where they aged the bottled Guinness… But, I don’t remember ever playing this one there. As said, I learned this take on it elsewhere and was interested in and enjoyed the differences between the two…

Dear WH, by a tune’s name, say "The Dublin Reel", I’m generally no more or less interested in a take from a Dubliner than from a French speaking Accadian from Les Îles-de-la-Madeleine, or a Metis fiddler, or so-and-so from Astoria, Washington in the Pacific Northwest of the U.S.A…. The differences would especially light my passion and interest…

Mostly, or at least as often as I’ve contributed something like this on its own, I add ‘alternate takes’ in the ‘comments’ to the earliest contribution of a tune. Several such contributions have been made over the last few days, other tunes from the McCuskers. I gave this, "The Miners of Wicklow", some thought, playing both tunes, this and your contribution, before submitting it seperately. If it had gone "Poof!", well, I’d have had to add it and the notes to the ‘comments’ for your contribution. Adding this here was not meant as a slur on your efforts, with respect. I am interested in both and think both are different enough to warrant a seperate place on their own, whether or not they originate from the place name in the title… In the end it is left to the spirit of this site, Jeremy’s decision…

The McCusker recording of this would have also been distributed and well known in North America, the U.S. & Canada, as well as Ireland, it got a lot of air time as the McCusker Ceili Band did a lot of gigs, played for a lot of dancing, being much more than just recording artists…

“The Wicklow March” / “The Wicklow’s March” - the history bit - 1777

~ just to make it more difficult for Ben. ;-)

Giles Gibbs, Junior - his book for the fife
Ellington, Connecticut, 1777

Also published as "Giles Gibbs, Jr.: His Book for the Fife"
Edited from the original manuscript by Kate Van Winkle Keller
The Connecticut Historical Society
Hartford, Connecticut, 1974
page 13 ~ "The Wicklow’s March"

Miners Of Wicklow

Was just listening to Joey Abarta play this in an online concert the other day - it’s on his CD, a piping setting from Patsy Touhey, which was included in the Piping of PT book. I’ll add that if you don’t beat me to it, ceol. It’s markedly different than these book settings.

Miners Of Wicklow

X:7 from Patsy Touhey, as promised/threatened. Can’t find the book! So going by memory/ear. I hear Patsy, or "Oh Bajayzus!" as the kids in Brooklyn used to call him - his favorite expression, apparently - throw in a backstitch on the middle d here and there, and maybe quadruplets as a variation in the 2nd part, (4fgaf (4gaba instead of plain jane faf gbg, as he also did in other jigs, Jackson’s Morning Brush for instance.

X: 8 “The Miners of Wicklow” :-D

It seems we’ve both had a go at ‘simplifying’ Pat Mitchell’s transcription of this one, you from memory, I’m impressed, and me from the page… Mitchell’s transcription is twice through each part complete, with lots of additional bits. I went looking for my recording of Patsy Tohey’s take on it, but it’s not quite accessible at this time. I’ll get a listen later and see how it goes with the book’s transcription. I’ve a ‘first edition’, and I don’t know if there have been any changes in later releases of the book. Pat has created some of his own notations for certain aspects of pipe technique. It’s a shame I haven’t the Joey Abarta recording as I’d have worked off of that instead, from listening, as I prefer to do.

Miners Of Wicklow

Looks good, that oughta keep ‘em out of trouble as they say. The tight AcA triplet is bread and butter in piping, you only have to lift one finger for each note, hence the choice of c instead of B. Touhey even describes this in his "Hints For Amateur Pipers" that was included as an appendix in O’Neill’s book Irish Music: A Fascinating Hobby. The backstitch is more obscure, Patsy kept that one under his hat. It’s basically a triplet played with two fingers of one hand and one of the other; the other hand note is the "target," the two fingers played by the other hand remain the same from note to note; thus GFd GFc GFB GFA for notes in the upper/left hand of the chanter. The lower/right hand plays the notes from G to D and those are backstitched in similar fashion.

A local flute player is quite taken with the old records of Tom Morrison; I was telling him how Morrison also played the pipes, and there’s even a disc of him duetting with Coleman, we know the titles but no one has found a copy; one of the jigs is "The Piper’s Backstitch."

How I’d love to catch an earful of that. I have been tempted to the piping side, repeatedly, constant, in part to understand it more and raise my respect for it. It would have to be a flat set. Unfortunately the price and finances prohibit such fancies, though I have been known to peruse measurements, plans… :-D Maybe some day…